This seminar examines qualitative methods used in social science research, focusing primarily on participant-observation, on asking questions, on writing fieldnotes, and the transferring of these primary field data into written ethnographic documents. It will emphasize ways in which students can most effectively collect, organize, analyze, and interpret qualitative data. Students will explore the ethical concerns most likely to be raised when engaging in qualitative research pursuits. Areas of qualitative methods covered include interviewing, historiography, document and textual analysis, ethnography, and sociometry. Seminar readings on specific research methods will contribute to the formulation of a research project to be carried out during the semester. Recent literature on the theoretical and ethical aspects of these methods will be considered in the context of these projects.
3 Credits